I shrugged. “It was a stupid rule.”
She swatted at my arm and chuckled. I loved seeing her smile.
“Now I feel bad because I followed the rules and only got you two things,” she said. Her gaze was fixed on the contents of the box in her lap. “You got me a for fox sake mug! I love it!”
“I know you’ve been wanting your own since you saw Pamela’s at the diner a while back, so I found one for you.”
“The fox is so cute!” Mina set the mug aside and Moonshine sniffed it. She’d already shredded the wrapping paper she’d gotten as small as she could. “Chapstick. I love that you know how much of a Chapstick girl I am. Oh, and fuzzy socks. I love a good pair of fuzzy socks.”
“I know.” The smile on my face stretched from ear to ear as satisfaction slithered through me. I’d done well in buying for her this year. I was proud. “There are some earbuds in there too. I know you lost yours a few weeks ago.”
She riffled through the tissue paper until she found them. “Thank you.”
If she loved this present so much, I wondered how she would react when she opened the other one from me.
“Hey, you haven’t opened yours,” Mina said. She’d shifted to face me. I was glad to see the twinkle in her eyes back. Screw Regina and the other side being unstable. We were still having a good Christmas together damn it. “Compared to this, I don’t think I did that great.”
“I’m sure I’ll love it.”
I tore the remaining pieces of wrapping paper off and opened a box. Inside was a black sweater. I pulled it out and flashed her a smirk.
“I know I’ve sort of adopted your other hoodie,” she said with a grin. “So, I decided to get you a new one.”
“Adopted? More like stole.”
“Whatever, you know what I mean.” She slapped at my chest. “Read it.”
I pulled the hoodie out of the box and glanced at the white lettering printed on the front. It said hungry ninjas are clumsy ninjas. A laugh belted from me.
“Remember when you said that to me?” she asked with a chuckle.
“I do.” It was the night we were going to stake out Drew’s place in search of Violet. “You said I should put it on a T-shirt because you’d buy it.”
“I know this isn’t a T-shirt but it is winter.”
“I love it.” I leaned forward and kissed her. “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome. Merry Christmas.”
“Merry Christmas.” I pulled the sweater over my head even though I wasn’t cold. I just really liked that Mina put my quote on it. That was badass. “Want to watch a movie?”
“Sure. Let me go change into my pajamas first.”
“I’ll come supervise.”
I followed her to the back of the trailer, hoping to keep her mind off Regina and the other side. Plus, I wanted to make sure there weren’t any ghosts hiding in the shadows.
When we made our way back to the living room, we curled up on the couch with Moonshine and watched The Christmas Story followed by Home Alone, saving the best for last, Elf. I dozed off with Mina’s head on my chest and Moonshine in my lap.
10
I woke the next morning to the sound of Mina screaming. She was no longer lying on my chest, but I was still on the couch.
“Eli!” Her voice echoed through our silent trailer.
I bolted to my feet and dashed down the hall toward her voice. The light to the bathroom was on and the door was cracked. Mina stood at the sink, her face pale and her eyes wide. Her body trembled, and the scent of cologne lingered in the air.
Whose was it? It damn sure wasn’t mine.
“He was just here,” Mina whispered. “He’s gone now, but I swear to you he was here.”
Goose bumps prickled across my skin. I knew whoever she was talking about wasn’t Santa.
“Who?”
“Shane.” Her eyes met mine in the mirror above the sink. “He was behind me in the mirror, standing right where you are now. There was this demonic look in his eyes.”
A shiver slipped through me at the mention of Shane being where I was seconds ago.
Shit. We weren’t only dealing with Regina now, but Shane too. This whole thing was like anything else in life—it would get worse before it got better.
I reached for Mina and pulled her into me, wrapping my arms around her. Toothpaste fell from her toothbrush to the floor, but neither of us commented on it.
“He was right there. Right behind me,” she said.
“I believe you.” I hugged her tight. “Don’t worry. We’ll visit the Caraways today and get this sorted out. I promise.”
I regretted making a promise to her I wasn’t sure I could keep the instant the words fell from my mouth.
“God, seeing him really freaked me out.”
Her body continued to tremble against mine, and I could feel her heartbeat against my chest.
“I’m sure,” I said.
“Will you stand here while I brush my teeth? I don’t want to be alone.”
This sucked. Shane and Regina shouldn’t be hanging around. Mina shouldn’t be scared to brush her teeth. It was Christmas for crying out loud. This was supposed to be a happy time.
“How about I brush my teeth with you?” I asked.
I grabbed my toothbrush and allowed Mina to squirt toothpaste on the bristles for me. While I brushed my teeth, I thought about how I could speed up the process of making the other side stable. Wasn’t there anything Gran could do to help Ridley heal faster if her being sick was the issue? Probably not anything her aunt couldn’t do better, being a witch and all.
After we finished brushing our teeth without another ghostly interruption, Mina and I made our way to the living room.
“It’s Christmas morning,” I said. “Care to open your other gift?”
I knew, if nothing else, my second present for her would at least make her laugh.
“Sure. Yeah. Merry Christmas.”
She was freaked out. Rightfully so. My wolf paced. He was tense too. I hoped this wasn’t setting the tone for the day.
“You have to open yours too,” Mina said. She was on her knees beside our tree. Her hazel eyes locked with mine, and I saw her unease swirling through them. She was trying to hide it, but it did no good. She grabbed the gift she’d gotten me and held it out. “Here.”
I took it from her, eager to see what it was. If it was half as cool as the hoodie I was wearing, I’d be happy.
“You open yours first since I opened mine first last night,” she insisted, her eyes never wavering from me.
“Okay.”
I tore at the wrapping paper, revealing a cardboard box for frozen all beef patties. It had to be one she’d taken from the diner.
“All beef patties. I like it,” I said to tease her.
She rolled her eyes. “Keep going.”
I used what little bit of a nail I had on my thumb and cut the tape to see what was inside. Two large cans of tomato soup, a loaf of bread, and a Post-it note telling me the cheese and butter were in the fridge. There was a winking face drawn on it.
“This is great!” I laughed. “You have to open yours now.”
“That was our first meal together, remember?” she asked as she tore at the wrapping paper of the box in her lap.
Oh, she was going to laugh her ass off in a second.
“I remember. I conned you into cooking for me,” I said.
Mina glanced in the box I’d put her present in and pulled out the jar of peanut butter, honey, and loaf of bread. I knew it was her favorite sandwich.
“That’s too funny!” She grinned. “Great minds think alike.”
“That and we definitely won’t be running out of bread or starving anytime soon.”
“True.” Mina headed to Moonshine’s crate and let her out. After she took her for a walk around the trailer, she unwrapped the new bed and bone we’d gotten for her. Moonshine was excited by both, but nothing beat the ball of wrapping paper I gave her to shred when Mina wasn’t lookin
g.
“I’m not cleaning that up. You are,” she scolded me.
“I will when she’s done.” I headed to the kitchen. “Are you hungry? I bought the stuff to make pancakes this morning. It’s a Vargas family tradition. My mom used to make them every Christmas for us.”
I couldn’t help but wonder if she was making some for my little brothers right now. I hoped so.
“Sure, I could eat.” Mina stood and carried her present from me into the kitchen. She set it all on the counter. “Need any help?”
“I can always use your help in the kitchen.” I flashed her a smile and then grabbed my cell from the counter to search for some holiday music.
Regardless of what was happening to the other side and who tried to come after us, I was determined to make this Christmas one we enjoyed.
With the old school sounds of Rockin’ Around The Christmas Tree by Brenda Lee blaring from my speakers, Mina and I made pancakes with chocolate chips and too much maple syrup. It was exactly what we both needed. We had such a good time, we left the music playing and decided to dance around the trailer with Moonshine hot on our heels.
Two o’clock came fast, though.
When we pulled up in front of the Caraway Inn for our visit with Rowena, my heart rate increased and my wolf became uneasy. While I was ready to see what the hell was going on with the other side—if that was the issue at all—I wasn’t ready to talk to Rowena about it. What if she didn’t know? What if there wasn’t anything that could be done?
“Wow,” Mina breathed. “Look at how they’ve decorated the place. It’s beautiful.”
I glanced out the windshield of my truck to stare at the house. Mina was right; it was pretty. White icicle lights were draped from the rails to the porch and every window of the large house. Silver snowflakes were suspended from the roof of the porch and small Christmas trees decorated in the tiniest blue and white ornaments I’d ever seen stood on either side of the bottom step.
Mina climbed out of the truck to get a better view and I followed. I’d barely made it around the front of my truck before the door to the inn opened and Rowena stepped out onto the porch to greet us. She wore a gray shawl that was wrapped around her shoulders, black pants, and black boots.
“I know you said this visit couldn’t wait, but I want you to know that Ridley has been sick. She came down with the flu a couple of days ago,” Rowena said.
I walked with Mina to the steps.
“I talked to her yesterday, and she mentioned she wasn’t feeling well. Is she any better today?” Mina asked.
“She’s on the mend. Come inside out of the cold.” Rowena nodded for us to follow her in the house. “Can I get either of you tea, or something else to drink?”
I knew all about her teas, and while it was tempting to ask for some knowing a few sips would dampen my anxiety, I didn’t think it wise. I needed to remain alert with everything going on.
“No, I’m good. Thanks, though,” I said.
Mina shook her head. “I’m okay too.”
“Okay. So, what brings you here on Christmas Day?” Rowena glanced at me from over her shoulder. Something in her eyes made me think she already knew the answer to her question.
This was what had me jumping right down to business.
“Have you seen people you shouldn’t? Ghosts of them, I mean,” I asked.
Rowena’s eyes widened. Her hand came to her throat as though it were hard to swallow. “It wasn’t a contained instance, then?”
“No. It wasn’t,” I said.
My eyes narrowed. Obviously, she knew the other side wasn’t stable. Why hadn’t she said anything to me? She hadn’t even said anything to the Montevallos.
Rowena turned to busy herself filling a kettle and then placed it on the stove. Her movements were jerky. I knew she was nervous. My wolf could sense it too. Was it because she was afraid of me? Of what I might say or do because she hadn’t told me something was wrong?
Was that something my father would’ve done?
I tried to think of how he would have handled the situation but kept drawing a blank. Maybe I hadn’t known him as well as I thought I had.
“I was hoping it was contained to the house. With it being the holidays, I didn’t want to worry anyone.” Rowena leaned against the kitchen counter and wrapped her arms around her middle. Her eyes locked on mine. “Especially not the two of you. This is your first Christmas together. Also, it’s the first one without your father. I know how difficult the holidays can be after you lose someone beloved. The void inside you. It’s an emptiness not even the most joyous of Christmas carols and magnificent of gifts can fill.”
Her fingers reached for the circular pendant on her necklace, and she absently touched it. A glazed look filled her eyes.
The reminder that Rowena had once been married hit me. Her husband had passed away a few years ago unexpectedly. Sympathy rippled through me for her and the irritation at her not mentioning the other side becoming unstable vanished.
“What can be done to help fix things?” Mina asked, keeping us all on track like always.
Rowena blinked, pulled from the memories of her past by Mina’s voice. “There isn’t much we can do. I’ve given Ridley herbal concoctions to help her heal faster. The only thing that can help her now is rest and time.” The kettle on the stove whistled, and she moved to a cabinet for a mug. Once she pulled one down, she stepped to the cabinet beside it and swung the door open to reveal rows of mason jars. In each was a white substance I didn’t recognize. “I did, however, get my hands on some blessed willow ash.”
“Some what?” I asked.
“Blessed willow ash. It holds great protective powers.” Rowena pulled a couple jars down and placed them on the counter in front of us.
I picked one up and stared at the substance inside. There didn’t seem to be anything magical or protective about it from what I could see, but I knew in the witch world looks could be deceiving. Heck, that rule applied to the entire supernatural world.
“It’s from a great willow tree in a majestic supernatural town. A friend of mine lives there. She burned a few of the tree’s fallen branches and blessed the ashes beneath the full moon, then mailed it to me when I told her Ridley was an anchor.”
“What are you supposed to do with it? How does it protect someone?” Mina asked.
“When spread with the intention of keeping evil out, the ash acts as a barrier.” Rowena twisted the lid off one of the mason jars and grabbed a pinch of the ash. She sprinkled it back into the jar, showcasing how fine it was.
“Seems like it would blow away easily,” I insisted. “If we were to spread this around the trailer park or across a windowsill, it doesn’t seem like it would stay in place.”
“You’d be surprised,” Rowena said.
I licked my lips, feeling as though I should have known better than to doubt her.
“Can we have a jar?” Mina asked. “Some in the trailer park have had a run-in or two with evil spirits from the past.”
Rowena’s eyes narrowed. “Wasn’t there a pack member who was pregnant?”
I had no clue where she was going with her question.
“Taryn,” Mina said.
“How far along is she?”
“Eight months.” Mina tucked her hair behind her ear. She seemed to know as well as I did this conversation wasn’t going anywhere good. “She’s due at the end of January. We had a baby shower for her about a week or two ago.”
“She’s why the spirits are so active in the trailer park,” Rowena said. “They’re waiting for the baby to be born.”
Shit, that sounded bad. Goose bumps prickled across my skin, and my wolf snapped at Rowena. He didn’t want anything happening to a member of our pack, especially not a newborn member.
“Why would they be waiting for the baby to be born?” I asked, needing more details. Knowledge was power, after all.
Rowena locked eyes with me. “When a new life is born into this world, their soul
is vulnerable, especially to a malevolent spirit waiting for a second chance at life.” Rowena pushed a jar of the blessed willow ash across the counter to me. “Use this to protect the child. You don’t want one of those spirits to corrupt its innocent soul.”
“Thanks.” I grabbed the jar.
“Take one more.” Rowena passed another jar to me. “Use it to protect the rest of your pack. Ridley should feel better soon, but it’s Christmas and no one should be tormented by evil on today of all days.”
Sadness reflected in her eyes. The sight of it tugged at my heartstrings.
“Can we have one more?” Mina asked, surprising me.
Rowena smirked. “For the wedding, I presume? Congratulations by the way.” Her eyes shifted from Mina to me.
“Thanks. It would be for in case Ridley isn’t feeling better by the wedding, or if all this isn’t under control by then,” Mina insisted. “If we don’t happen to use it, I can bring it back.”
“We could push the wedding back a few days,” I suggested. It was a dumb thing to say, but once the words were out, I couldn’t take them back.
Mina shot me a look from hell.
“We’re not moving our wedding. Too much craziness is always happening around us. If we move it once, we’ll move it again and then it will never happen.”
“Valid point. Never mind,” I said, hoping it would diffuse the situation.
The corner of my lips twisted into a grin when she wasn’t looking. I loved she was so adamant about keeping the wedding where it was.
“Mina is right. In the world we live in, there will always be something trying to keep us from enjoying the good moments. It’s best to push past them and live anyway.” Rowena handed Mina a third jar of blessed willow ash. “And no one should worry about evil spirits lurking in the shadows on their wedding day. Also, if you’re in need of a place to host the wedding, please remember you can always have it here. My backyard can be quite beautiful in the middle of winter with white lights draped around. It wouldn’t be the first winter wedding that’s taken place there.”
Her eyes grew misty, and I found myself wondering if her wedding had been held here in the winter.
“Thank you,” Mina said. Her lips twisted into a soft smile. Did she pick up on the same sadness coming from Rowena as I did? “I’m sure a wedding here would be beautiful, but I think I already have the perfect place in mind.”
Moon Vowed (Mirror Lake Wolves Book 8) Page 6